M. Hertel

Metal vapour causes a central minimum in arc temperature in gas-metal arc welding through increased radiative emission

A computational model of the argon arc plasma in gas‐metal arc welding (GMAW) that includes the influence of metal vapour from the electrode is presented. The occurrence of a central minimum in the radial distributions of temperature and current density is demonstrated. This is in agreement with some recent measurements of arc temperatures in GMAW, but contradicts other measurements and also the predictions of previous models, which do not take metal vapour into account. It is shown that the central minimum is a consequence of the strong radiative emission from the metal vapour. Other effects of the metal vapour, such as the flux of relatively cold vapour from the electrode and the increased electrical conductivity, are found to be less significant. The different effects of metal vapour in gas‐tungsten arc welding and GMAW are explained.

Modelling of gas–metal arc welding taking into account metal vapour

The most advanced numerical models of gas–metal arc welding (GMAW) neglect vaporization of metal, and assume an argon atmosphere for the arc region, as is also common practice for models of gas–tungsten arc welding (GTAW). These models predict temperatures above 20 000 K and a temperature distribution similar to GTAW arcs. However, spectroscopic temperature measurements in GMAW arcs demonstrate much lower arc temperatures. In contrast to measurements of GTAW arcs, they have shown the presence of a central local minimum of the radial temperature distribution.This paper presents a GMAW model that takes into account metal vapour and that is able to predict the local central minimum in the radial distributions of temperature and electric current density. The influence of different values for the net radiative emission coefficient of iron vapour, which vary by up to a factor of hundred, is examined. It is shown that these net emission coefficients cause differences in the magnitudes, but not in the overall trends, of the radial distribution of temperature and current density. Further, the influence of the metal vaporization rate is investigated. We present evidence that, for higher vaporization rates, the central flow velocity inside the arc is decreased and can even change direction so that it is directed from the workpiece towards the wire, although the outer plasma flow is still directed towards the workpiece. In support of this thesis, we have attempted to reproduce the measurements of Zielinska et al for spray-transfer mode GMAW numerically, and have obtained reasonable agreement.

Numerical simulation of droplet detachment in pulsed gas–metal arc welding including the influence of metal vapour

A numerical model of the droplet detachment of a gas–metal arc welding process is presented. The model is based on the volume of fluid method and focuses on the detailed description of the interaction between the arc and the anodic wire electrode. The influence of metal vapour on the arc plasma and the arc attachment at the wire is taken into account. The formation of metal vapour at the wire is described self-consistently as a function of the wire temperature by the help of the Hertz–Knudsen–Langmuir equation. Results are presented for a pulsed gas–metal arc welding process with a wire of mild steel and argon as the shielding gas.

Numerical simulation of the plasma–MIG process—interactions of the arcs, droplet detachment and weld pool formation

The plasma–metal inert gas (MIG) process is characterized by a variety of process parameters. Numerical simulation can be used to investigate the influence of these process parameters and thus helps to improve the properties of the weld. In this paper we discuss a procedure to describe the plasma–MIG process by coupling numerical models of the arc and the droplet detachment with a three-dimensional model for the plasma–MIG weld pool. Using the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) arc model, the effects of process parameters on the arc pressure profile and the energy input profile on the workpiece can be analyzed. The volume-of-fluid (VoF)–MHD model of the droplet detachment describes the properties of the resulting droplet in terms of its size, temperature and speed. In the three-dimensional VoF model of the weld pool, the influences of the arc and the droplet are simplified by source terms in the mass, momentum and energy equations. Due to these simplifications in the physical complexity, the process and the seam shape can be described with reasonable computational effort.

Numerical and Experimental Studies of the Influence of Process Gases in Tig Welding

This paper presents extensive investigations about the influence of He-additions to argon TIG-arc properties. Results of diagnostic methods, numerical simulations and welding trials are combined to improve the comprehension about the mode of action of gas mixtures. Additionally, selected results of the investigation with H2- and N2-additions are summarized. The investigations show that all gas additions cause an increase of the heat input into the workpiece. However, the stagnation pressure depends on the gas composition: He-additions result in a decrease of the stagnation pressure which depends on the arc length, whereas H2-and N2-additions increase the pressure. By a systematic choice of the gas mixture the weld depth and also the maximum feed speed can be influenced.

Numerical simulation of arc and droplet transfer in pulsed GMAW of mild steel in argon

The process capability of gas metal arc welding (GMAW) processes is mainly determined by the arc properties and the material transfer. In recent years, numerical methods are being used increasingly in order to understand the complex interactions between the arc and material transfer in gas metal arc welding. In this paper, we summarize a procedure to describe the interaction between an arc and a melting and vaporizing electrode. Thereafter, the presented numerical model is used to investigate the arc properties and the metal transfer for a pulsed GMAW process of mild steel in argon. The results of the numerical simulation are compared with OES measurements as well as high-speed images at different times in the pulse cycle and show excellent agreement. The results illustrate the high influence of the changing vaporization rate on the arc attachment at the wire electrode in the high current phase. It could be shown that a substantial part of the current does not participate in the constriction of the wire electrode via the resulting lorentz force which explains the nearly spatter-free droplet detachment in pulsed GMAW processes of mild steel in argon shielding gas.

Methods and results concerning the shielding gas flow in GMAW

Gas metal arc welding (GMAW) of aluminium, high alloyed steel or titanium requires a shielding gas cover in order to provide preferably low parts per million concentration of oxygen at the joint. Consequently, it is necessary to be able to describe and to analyse the flow of shielding gas. The paper presents numerical and diagnostic investigations concerning the shielding gas flow in gas metal arc welding. Therefore, a numerical model and several diagnostic methods have been developed. The model used is based on ANSYS CFX and includes the effects of magneto hydrodynamic, turbulence and diffusion depending on temperature. The model is verified by Particle Image Velocimetry, Schlieren-technique, and gauging the oxygen concentration. Advantages and disadvantages of these particular methods and the potential of their combined application to analyse welding processes and torch design are shown. The methods introduced were used for the precise analysis of the shielding gas flow and the construction of torches in GMAW. The formation of turbulence by actual concepts of gas distributors and the advantages of optimised and innovative torch constructions are demonstrated. Furthermore the interaction between the process and the shielding gas flow is described and the explicit dependency of the gas cover based on the current profile employed (pulse welding) is visualised. Based on these results, the way in which different gas nozzles influence the shielding gas flow and what happens if the position of the torch or the type of joint changes is explained. In summary, the paper details the profound physical correlations between the construction of the torch and the shielding gas cover as well giving concrete advice for users of the GMAW processes.

Energy balance in MIG arcs

Recent studies of metal inert gas (MIG) processes by spectroscopy and fluid simulations have shown that metal evaporation causes a specific spatial structure of the arc, and among others a minimum of plasma temperature at the arc centre. Changes in the arc structure and in the heat transfer to the material are closely connected with the arc energy balance; its detailed analysis has not been carried out so far under the specific impact of metal vapour. In this paper, magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of an MIG arc in argon including iron evaporation at the wire tip are considered. The main terms in the energy balance are discussed focusing on a comparison of the arc regions with and without metal vapour. In addition, a simple approach of the energy balance at a cross section of the MIG arc is proposed where all details of the heat transport are neglected. The MHD model and the simplified approach are in good agreement and clearly demonstrate that the specific structure in an MIG arc is mainly caused by the different temperature dependence of the plasma radiation and the electrical conductivity in argon or in argon mixtures with iron vapour.

Numerical Investigations of the Influence of Metal Vapour in GMA Welding

Current numerical models of gas metal arc welding (GMAW) attempt to combine a magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model of the arc and a volume-of-fluid (VoF) model of metal transfer. But in these models vaporization of metal is neglected and the arc region is assumed to be composed of pure argon, as it is common practice for models of gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW). These models predict temperatures over 20 000 K and a temperature distribution similar to GTAW arcs. However, recent spectroscopic temperature measurements in GMAW arcs have demonstrated much lower arc temperatures. In contrast to GTAW arcs, they found a central local minimum of the radial temperature distribution. The paper presents a GMAW arc model that considers metal vapour and which is in very good agreement with experimentally observed temperatures. Furthermore, the model is able to predict the local central minimum in the radial temperature and the radial electric current density distributions for the first time. The axially symmetric model of the welding torch, the workpiece, the wire and the arc (fluid domain) implements MHD as well as turbulent mixing and thermal demixing of metal vapour in argon. The mass fraction of iron vapour obtained from the simulation shows an accumulation in the arc core and another accumulation on the fringes of the arc at 2 000 to 5 000 K. The demixing effects lead to very low concentrations of iron between these two regions. Sensitive analyses demonstrate the influence of the transport and radiation properties of metal vapour, the welding current and the evaporation rate.

Modelling of the cathode sheath region in TIG welding

To date, several numerical models representing the tungsten inert gas (TIG) arc are available. However, little has been done on testing the reliability of these models for parameter values differing from the ones used in the respective papers. This paper deals with the comparison of measured arc welding data provided by E. Siewert from Linde AG and the results of the two most common arc and cathode sheath models. These models make different degrees of simplification of the actual processes in the arc, especially the cathode sheath. Different shapes of the electrodes, different welding currents and shielding gases are taken into account as well as the resolution of the numerical grid on which the calculations are carried out. The findings of this paper are used to show when a simplified approach still leads to valid results and when more sophisticated models have to be used.